The Off Season
Dir. James Felix McKenney (2003 90 min, 1.85)
Christina Campanella, Don Wood, Ruth Kulerman, Larry Fessenden, Angus Scrimm
In the beginning, THE OFF SEASON appears to be the story of a young couple from New York City moving up to Maine to get away from it all. Soon, strange things begin to happen in the one-room apartment that they occupy — things that the once close couple cannot discuss with each other. This is not a typical ghost story resulting from a tragic death, but the tale of a place haunted by guilt and the fear of abandonment.
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PRESS ARCHIVE August 10: Angus Scrimm Takes THE OFF SEASON Fangoria by Jeremiah Kipp June 28: THE OFF SEASON/AMONG US DVD art/specs Fangoria by Michael Gingold April 21: Lions Gate books THE OFF SEASON and more Fangoria by Michael Gingold 2004 December 17: THE OFF SEASON on screen at NC festival Fangoria by Tony Timpone & Michael Gingold September 30: "INDIE SHOP OF HORRORS" An Interview with ScareFlix Executive Producer Larry Fessenden. Filmmaker Magazine By Jeremiah Kipp September 14: "THE OFF SEASON and THE ROOST to premiere in NYC" Fangoria By Tony Timpone September 14: "Glass Eye Pix Premieres Two In NYC" The Horror Channel by Ryan Rotten August 19: "Larry Fessenden talks his latest projects" Fangoria by Nicanor Loreti May 13: "New sites for ScareFlix's ROOST and OFF SEASON" Fangoria 2003 November 6: "Larry Fessenden/Scare Flix rule THE ROOST" FangoriaMay 23: "THE OFF SEASON WRAPS" Rue Morgue April 3: "Angus Scrimm on board for THE OFF SEASON" Fangoria |
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THE OFF SEASON Rick and Kathryn settle down for the winter in a dingy motel in Maine. The neighbors are quite odd, but there's something much more bizarre occupying this seaside dwelling.
From CANNIBALLISTIC! director James Felix McKenney comes the eerie tale of two people trapped together and driven apart by the guilt-ridden specters inhabiting their single room. THE OFF SEASON is a time and place where people find themselves trapped in a claustrophobic Limbo and dreams are stifled out of existence. It is where Guilt has taken up residence and Fear reigns. Christina Campanella (THE ADDICTION), Don Wood (TV's COLONIAL HOUSE & IN A FIX), Angus Scrimm (PHANTASM), Larry Fessenden (HABIT) and Brenda Cooney (CONVULSION) join veteran actress Ruth Kulerman and New York performance artists Jamie Sneider and Francine Pado in a ghost story that proves that it's not always as simple as just packing up and leaving. |
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JAMES FELIX MCKENNEY'S "THE OFF SEASON" WRAPS PRINCIPAL PHOTOGRAPHY. Glass Eye Pix Produces New MonsterPants Movie |
| NEW YORK, May 13, 2003 - Glass Eye Pix is pleased to announce that the cast and crew of its latest horror flick have left their temporary home in Southern Maine to return to New York City.THE OFF SEASON was shot in a motel in Old Orchard Beach, Maine, a town that neighbors the one in which writer/director James Felix McKenney grew up and shot his first feature, CANNIBALLISTIC! (2001„Now available on Spectrum/Dead Alive DVD and VHS).While filming, the cast -- which includes Christina Campenella (THE ADDICTION), Don Wood (CANNIBALLISTIC!), Angus Scrimm (PHANTASM), Larry Fessenden (HABIT, WENDIGO) and New York performance artists Jamie Sneider and Francine Pado -- stayed at the Waves and Viking motels where the film was set. Fessenden also produces.In the beginning, THE OFF SEASON appears to be the story of a young couple from New York City moving up to Maine to get away from it all. Soon, strange things begin to happen in the one-room apartment that they occupy -- things that the once close couple cannot discuss with each other. This is not a typical ghost story resulting from a tragic death, but the tale of a place haunted by guilt and the fear of abandonment.Unlike most traditional ghost stories, which take place in an old mansion, castle or other giant structure, THE OFF SEASON is about the haunting of a tiny room. The main characters have nowhere to hide when confronted by unhappy spirits. It can be easy to run away and slam a door between yourself and something that scares you, but few things are more terrifying than being forced to look the source of your fear directly in the eye.On the casting of Angus Scrimm (best known for his portrayal of "The Tall Man" in the PHANTASM film series), McKenney says, "I wrote the script with Angus in mind for the role of the eccentric former rodeo star, Ted, but I doubted we would be able to get him for the movie. When we found out he was going to be on the East Coast in April, we decided to give him a call and arranged our schedule to accommodate him. He was absolutely wonderful to work with and even wrote two songs for the film!"McKenney continues: "I've always enjoyed films like PHANTASM that are able to combine a dead serious tone with some oddball characters and scenes that make the scary moments that much more frightening. It is this type of non-traditional tone that will set our ghost story apart from many of the recent films of this type." THE OFF SEASON is a chilling film that also has a its own warmth and charm. Producer Fessenden ads: "It was very gratifying to put this film together, because Jim knew exactly what he wanted and he had a team of collaborators he's worked with for years to help him do it, including his lead Don Wood, his D.P. David W. Hale, his sound man Noah DeFilippis and key grip Laree Love. I've always wanted to produce a series of grass-roots scare-flicks in the Roger Corman tradition, and JimÍs script and approach was perfectly suited. Shot in 24p in 10 days with a crew of 5, THE OFF SEASON is the scale of production that will always be close to my heart." Postproduction is already underway. |